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Girlfriends in God - Oct. 25, 2007

In 1974, I traveled to Europe with a group of students to study abroad. My family was falling apart, and yet I felt compelled to leave the safety of my friends to spend twelve weeks with strangers.A big part of me did not want to go.Being a new Christian, I depended on my friends to keep me afloat.However, God was trying to teach me how to swim on my own.

Before I left, my group of Christian girlfriends gave me a gift.They had taken a large medicine bottle and filled it with a homemade remedy.A handwritten label was taped to the outside with the following instructions:

For: Miss Sharon EdwardsPBP 71240

Take as needed for uplifting of the spirit.

May be followed by faith and prayer for faster relief.

Vitamin PTLa

Filled by SIC

Inside the medicine bottle, were 100 Bible verses written on small strips of paper and rolled up like tiny scrolls.These verses were my medicine; the “pharmacists” were my Sisters in Christ, and the Vitamins were Praise the Lord Anyway brand.

Jesus is often called The Great Physician.In Mark 1:32, the writer tells us that people brought many who were sick to Jesus and He healed various diseases.Matthew Henry, in his commentary describes Jesus’ words as a “panpharmacon – a salve for every sore.”Don’t you just love that?That’s what my teenage girlfriends in God gave to me. They gave me God’s Word, a panpharmacon, to take with me on my trip.He was the Great Physician, His Word was the medicine, and my GiGs were the pharmacists who fulfilled the prescription.

That gift of the heart was giving to me over 30 years ago, and yet, I’ve carried them with me through high school, college, marriage and many, many moves. I have kept that bottle of love with me at each crossroad and bend in the road.That’s the power of a woman’s words to her friends.We never know how a small act of kindness will touch someone’s heart for many years to come.We never know how offering a just the right verse from the Bible at the right moment can heal an ailing soul.

Let’s Pray

Dear Heavenly Father, I thank You for my Girlfriends in God that You have sent into my life at various stages and seasons.I pray that I will be the kind of friend who can share the healing words in Your Holy Word when I see a hurting soul.In Jesus’ Name,

Amen

Now It’s Your Turn

Do you have certain verses that have been especially healing for you?If so, write them down.

Are there certain areas of struggle that you are having in your life and you need a word from the Great Physician?If so, grab a good concordance and look up verses pertaining to your particular struggle.

If you have young children, consider making your own medicine bottle filled with the promises of God.

More from the Girlfriends

Are there certain areas of your life, perhaps pain from things that have been done to you or feelings of shame from past mistakes that haunt you?Did you know that The Great Physician longs to heal those broken places?If you have wounds in your life that need healing, you might want to read Your Scars are Beautiful to Godby Sharon Jaynes. She’ll take you through the steps from wounded-ness to healing.

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